The Innocence of Youth
by idreamof
Summary: A potions accident reveals several of Harry's most hidden secrets. Harry turned into a baby fic AU sixth year. Warnings: A few mentions of child abuse. spoilers for books 1 to 5, and a few from book 6. Chapter four is up. ON HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

**The Innocence of Youth**

_Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I probably don't own. Do I look like J. K. Rowling to you?_

Chapter One:

"Ron, pay attention to what you're doing!"

"It's kind of hard to do, Hermione, when an idiot like Malfoy is quite obviously talking shit about your family."

It was rather evident who Malfoy was insulting, as the words "pig sty", "filth", and "weasel" could be heard rather frequently in his mockery.

"Ignore him. He's not worth anything. You have to pay attention to what you're doing Ron. You don't want to get in trouble in only the second class this year! Besides, this type of shrinking solution is rather volatile. Not like the ones we did in earlier years. You have to add in the boomslang skin _before_ the aconite, and then stir it four times _clockwise_! Not following the directions can be dangerous, Ron!"

"Maybe I can create a poison to stuff down Malfoy's throat."

"Ron!"

He threw in more boomslang skin.

"Ron! You already put in too..."

Her words were cut off as an explosion racked the room. The potion bubbled dangerously, spraying and splashing everywhere. When it settled, they saw that Neville, Seamus, and Dean, who had been working at the next cauldron, looked rather shocked, confused, and... different, and Harry, who had been silently measuring and cutting up ingredients for their potion while his friends bickered, was nowhere to be seen

"Weasley! Detention at 7:00 tonight. Don't be late unless you want it every night until Christmas!"

"You guys all look really old," Seamus blurted out. Neville's brow creased in confusion. Dean nodded, frowning.

"What the hell happened?"

"Old? Woah. Wait a minute... come to think of it, you look pretty youn..."

Snape stalked over to where the puddles of potion lay on the floor.

"It seems that through your incompetence, Weasley, you have created some sort of shrinking solution. Finnigan, your age?"

Seamus looked at them questioningly.

"Thirteen, Sir..."

"Thomas?"

"Er, twelve..."

"Longbottom?"

"F-fourteen, professor."

"It seems that my assumptions were correct. Miss Granger, escort them down to the hospital wing so that Madame Pomfrey can check for any other damage."

The three boys grumbled, but allowed Hermione to lead them out the door.

Suddenly, they heard a muffled sob. Only then did they notice the small pile of robes, soaked in potion, that lay on the floor.

Ron's eyes widened as he saw a small head of dark hair poke itself out of the collar of the shirt.

"Aunt P-punia?"

Everyone stared in shock at the baby sitting on the floor. His tears and sobs seemed to go unnoticed by the crowd, but, used to being ignored, the baby's crying didn't escalate.

Snape shook himself slightly, and broke the silence.

"Weasley!Take himto thehospital wing, now!"

Ron bent down, and picked up his best friend. He seemed to be around two years old, but was unnaturaly thin, pale and small. He quickly walked off to thehospital wing.

"Ron! What...?I-is that... H-harry?"

Ronnodded silently. Harry had fallen asleep, with his face buried into Ron's shoulder, but his head of wild hair was unmistakable. A small, pale foot twitched, as its owner rubbed his eyes sleepily,waking up from his little nap.

AN: I know its short, but I was bored, and I looove plots like this.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Innocence of Youth**

_Disclaimer for all chapters: I am not J.K. Rowling. Anything you recognize I do not own. _

Chapter Two

Hermione watched open mouthed, as her best friend sleepily rubbed his eyes with two small hands. He was wrapped in his oversized robes, but seemed to be shivering. Hermione shook herself out of her reverie.

"He's cold, Ron."

Ron looked down at Harry, and, noticing the shivering, wrapped the robes tighter around the toddler. However, the infant immediately started to cry.

Harry's wails echoed throughout the hospital wing, and Madame Pomfrey, hearing the cries of distress, came running.

"Oh my. What...Is that...Mr. Potter?"

Hermione and Ron nodded silently, and Madame Pomfrey took Harry into her arms, gently rocking him back and forth. She walked over to the nearest empty bed, and placed Harry on it. She then left the room, returning with a teddy bear. She caressed Harry's cheek, and tried to show him the toy. His cries did not subside, and he looked at the bear nervously, almost fearfully.

"Harry, dear, would you like the toy?"

Harry shook his head tearfully.

"N-no."

"Why not?"

"T-toys f-for D-dudy"

"Duddy? Dudley?"

The nurse's eyes widened slightly. Had Harry been denied toys, so that they could go to Dudley? What else had he been deprived of? Her thoughts immediately strayed to the times where she had been patching him up, after some injury or another, and had seen his bony arms and torso not hidden by his robes. Had the Dursleys gone so far as to deprive a child of food?

Ron silently watched his best friend sleep. He had opted to stay awake and watch Harry, while Hermione was asleep in the next bed. Harry was curled up into a protective ball, huddled underneath the covers. He noted that some habits are hard to get rid of, as Harry still slept curled up protectively. He never truly relaxed, even in slumber. Ron reached over and brushed back the hair from his friend's forehead. Harry immediately tensed and scrunched up his face. Ron was taken aback. Why did Harry draw away from the touch? Why didlook as ifin anticipation of...pain?Had Harry been... hit before? But no... that couldn't be true... sure, Harry's relatives were a bit harsh, but they were civil... sort of... And he was only two...Ron pushed the possibility of abuse from his mind, and drew his hand back from Harry's forehead.

It was strange seeing Harry like this. The Harry _he_ knew was tough, resilient, and quiet. The Harry he knew masked his emotions well. He put up a facade of invincibility and strength. This Harry was even smaller than the Harry he knew. This Harry wasn't as tough, strong, or resilient. He didn't seem as invincible. He seemed rather vulnerable. It was odd for Ron to hold a best friend who had, in many ways, always stood in front of everybody else, shielding them from many horrors, taking the brunt of the force or attack. This Harry seemed so... innocent, and breakable. But was he really weaker, or less resilient than theteenaged Harry? Would any other child, having been placed in a room full of strangers, react the way Harry did? He had cried when he had awoken in the dungeons, but he hadn't cried very loudly. He hadn't bawled for his mother... Was his mother even alive at this point? He then realized that Harry's mother hadn't even been alive when Harry was two. Had Harry been able to say "mommy", when she had died? Had he ever learned to say, "Daddy, I want to go play outside,", or, "Mama, I want cookies,"?

Probably not.

Hermione watched Harry's pale face as it twitched and scrunched up in his sleep. It was startling to realize, that without his facade of strength and bravery, Harry was really just as scared as the rest of them. Seeing him as a baby revealed so many things. She knew that if the 16 year old Harry had been placed in a room full of strangers, he would have stunned and bound every single one of them, if he thought they posed a threat to him or his friends. Now however, Harry wouldn't be sacrificing anything to protect anybody. Now _he_ needed protection. He wouldn't feel responsible when there were Death Eater attacks. He wouldn't try to rush to protect everyone. He would probably just sleep through it, unaware of anything going on out of the room. She decided to take it upon herself to protect Harry while she could, from the dangers and problems of the outside world.

Ron and Hermione were conversing quietly by Harry's bedside, when they heard a soft sniffle. They looked up to see large emerald eyes staring at them fearfully.

"Harry?" Hermione asked softly.

Harry's eyes welled up with tears as he looked up at the two strangers sitting by his beside.

"Who're you?"

Albus Dumbledore gently stroked Fawkes as he gazed into his pensive. Severus had come to him explaining the incident in 6th year potions. Harry was now 2 years old. He had always felt that something wasn't quite right with the boy. Would it be revealed now? Had the Dursleys been harsher than he had first believed? Every so often, he had gotten a very brief glimpse of what might have been a scar or bruise, sometimes on Harry's neck, sometimes on his arms... but it hadn't been long enough to know for sure if they really were injuries, or just a trick of the light or shadow. Harry had always been able to put up a mask for his emotions. Did he still wear that mask at the tender age of two?


	3. Chapter 3

**The Innocence of Youth**

_Disclaimer for all chapters: I am not J.K. Rowling_

Chapter Three

When Harry awoke the next day, Madame Pomfrey was immediately by his side, trying to coax him into drinking a bottle, and eating a piece of banana. However, Harry only ate very little of what she tried to give him. He looked at the banana as if in awe. The worries she had had in her mind the day before resurfaced. Had Harry been denied food, even as a baby? But no... that could not be possible. No one in their right mind would deny an infant food.

She was drawn out of her reverie by a soft coughing. She looked down to find Harry coughing up bits of banana. She noticed that he was desperately trying to muffle the sounds, and to clean up his mess of fruit. When she reached down to help him, he immediately drew back in fear. Another frightening concept pushed its way to the surface of her mind: had he been hit as well?

She slowly put her arms around him, and picked him up, whispering soothing words and gentle reassurances in his ear.

"Don't worry, dear, I'm not going to hurt you. How about we get you cleaned up, eh?"

She walked slowly over to a cupboard, and drew out a small set of pyjamas. Earlier, she had simply transfigured his robes into a set of nightclothes, but, now that he was awake, she was scared that such an action would alarm the child. She did not know if he had any memory of magic at the age of two.

She gently undid the buttons of his small shirt, and removed it slowly. She was taken aback by what she saw. They did not stand out, not overly so, but they were visible: the toddler's chest was littered with faint bruises, and there were shadows in the shape of large fingers around his small neck.

She numbly finished changing the baby, and gently placed him back on his bed, tucking him in.

Harry watched her with wide green eyes as she stumbled over to the fireplace, to floo call the headmaster.

Dumbledore walked briskely into the hospital wing from the fireplace, and headed over to the bed where baby Harry lay sleeping. He gently, but quickly, undid the buttons on Harry's shirt. Though his expression did not change, his face visibly paled several shades when he saw the bruises that marred the baby's soft skin. He then redid the buttons, and turned around.

"The evidence is of utmost importance if we are to file a suit against the Dursley family. But how are we to know for sure?"

"Albus! There is no other possibility of where those bruises came from! Can you not see the handprints?" Madame Pomfrey's voice got shriller with every word she said.

"I know, Poppy... but how do we know that it was Mr. Vernon Dursley who commited this henious act? How do we know it was not Petunia, or that Harry did not get into a fight with Dudley, or that all these are marks from some accident that was not meant to happen?"

"Albus, those hands are much to large to belong to either one of those people, and you know it was not an accident!You can't deny this, so don't even try!"

"Poppy, we must have patience. We'll see if we find out anything else, before we alert other authorities. I believe we must first find out why Harry has hidden this from us for so long..."

The aged headmasters eyes were completely devoid of any twinkle at that point. His shoulders were slightly sagged in defeat, as the horrible possibility that everyone had tried to deny for so many years weighed heavily on his mind.

Hermione gently stroked Ron's hair as he slept, his head on her lap. They had just been told of what the nurse had found: Harry's bruises. She was raking her mind, going through all her memories, trying to find one in which Harry had hinted at any sort of abuse at home. She couldn't remember a single time when he had revealed anything. In her mind, she was still desparately trying to deny the possibility. Harry couldn't have been abused... it just wasn't possible...but in her heart she knew. It explained every single one of Harry's insecurities, however small or insignificant they may have seemed, and every twitch or flinch that he made. It would even explain his small stature and frail-seeming body. It would explain his extreme hatred for his aunt and uncle, and his reluctance to return home every summer. It explained so much... but she preferred not having the explanations, and still living under the illusion that Harry had a normal home life.

Harry stirred, and woke up from his nap, but everyone was preoccupied, so he took the chance to take a look around him. Who were all these nice people? They hadn't hurt him yet, but would they in the future? Should he take the chance? The big man with the big beard seemed especially funny. He liked it here. He didn't want to go back home. Dudy was mean to him, and pushed him around. Uncle Vernon was big and mean and bad, and hit him a lot. Aunt Punia didn't give him any food, but she always gave lots to Dudy. They always locked him in his cupboard. He didn't like his cupboard. There were lots of yucky spiders. Did he have a mummy and a daddy like Dudy? If he did, he wished they would come and take him away. Maybe they would cuddle him all the time, like Dudy got cuddled. Maybe they would give him lots of treats and candy, like Aunt Punia gave to Dudy. Maybe they wouldn't hurt him... Uncle Vernon didn't hurt Dudy...

Were these nice people his mummy and daddy? Maybe...

But he vaguely recalled a someone with messy, dark hair, and a woman with brilliant red locks as being his daddy and mummy... none of these people looked like that...

Tears of dissapointmen filled his emerald eyes, and he lay his head back onto the pillow, and fell into a fitful sleep.

_How was that?Please review!_


	4. Chapter 4

**The Innocence of Youth**

_Disclaimer for all chapters: I am not J.K. Rowling. She owns the Harry Potter world. I do not. _

_AN: I am back. After a loooong break, in which I ventured off into a few other fandoms, and struggled through a nasty bout of writer's block. But I am back now. I have also realized that my writing skill is rather sub-par. I will try to improve this. I cannot make any guarantees though. I hope this story comes out as at least a bit of what you were hoping for. _

_Now. On with the story._

Chapter Four

When Harry awoke, his head was resting on someone's shoulder. He blearily blinked the sleep from his eyes, and turned his head slightly, trying to get comfortable enough to go back to sleep. However, a mass of fiery red hair caught his eyes. Someone was holding him. Someone with a nice hold-- gentle and warm, but firm enough to make him feel protected and safe. He only knew two people who had ever held him like that...but his daddy's hair was short and black, not long and red... That left only one person...

"Mummy?"

Eight heads turned around to look at him.

"Mummy?" He tried again, tugging gently on a lock of the red hair that was obscuring his vision. "Mummy?"

Eight sets of eyes widened slightly at the realization of what he was asking. Ginny held him tighter, gently rubbing his back.

"I'm not your mum, Harry... My name is Ginny." He tugged on her hair again.

"Mummy!"

"N-No, Harry, I'm Ginny."

Harry's eyes filled with tears of disappointment and he squirmed, trying to free himself of Ginny's grip. Before he managed to fall and hurt himself, however, he was picked out of her arms by the funny man with the big beard. He liked this man so he stopped squirming and buried his face in the man's beard, smothering his sniffles in the long white hair.

"Harry?" Dumbledore put a finger under his chin and gently lifted his face up. Harry sniffed, bringing two small fists up to rub at his eyes. Dumbledore then walked over to where Remus was sitting, and placed Harry in his lap. Harry looked up with wide eyes at the werewolf, his face suddenly breaking into a smile, in stark contrast of the despair it had shown just minutes before.

"Moony!"

To say that the group was shocked that Harry recognized Remus, much less remembered his name, would be an understatement. Harry, however, was oblivious to their shock. He latched his small hands onto Remus's ears as he used to do, all those years ago whenever Remus would come to Godric's Hollow. He leaned in, as if to tell the werewolf a secret.

"Moony, mummy and daddy's gone." Remus smiled sadly at the toddler as he nodded, stroking his hair gently.

"They are, Prongslet. Paddy's gone too."

"Gone?"

"Yeah."

"They come back?"

"No, they won't be coming back."

"Oh." Harry's eyes filled with tears again, and he rested his head against Remus's chest. He looked up at the werewolf's face.

"You stay?"

"Yeah, Harry, I'll stay."

"Good."

And with that, he snuggled into Remus's robes and drifted off to sleep again. Everyone was stunned into silence for a few minutes, before Dumbledore cleared his throat gently and started to address the matter at hand.

"In light of recent... developments, we have need to discuss Harry's placement with his aunt and uncle, Petunia and Vernon Dursley. I admit, it was my idea, and until today, I was under the impression that, while he may be unhappy, nothing could hurt him there. I have been proven very, very wrong." The twinkle in his eyes was gone, and his features held a surprisingly guilty look. He stood and reached for Harry, who was handed over to him by Remus. He sat back down in his chair, and cradled Harry in one arm, using the other to undo the buttons of his small shirt. The bruises that littered the pale skin were shocking, and all members of the small meeting paled. Ron's jaw dropped, tears pricked at Ginny and Hermione's eyes, and even Snape's complexion whitened a few shades.

Large hand prints were visible all too near the toddler's neck, as well as on his back, accompanied by various other bruises marring the smooth skin. What could a baby have done to deserve such treatment? No one spoke for a moment. Suddenly, the room erupted into angry shouts. Harry whimpered a bit in his sleep, and Dumbledore silenced the room with a reproving glare. The angry protests started again, but this time in whispers.

"He should never have gone there in the first place!"

"I told you that day that they were horrible muggles!"

"I can't believe we never noticed!"

"After all these years..."

"He never said a word!"

"The poor dear..."

"He never did anything to deserve such treatment!"

"He won't be staying there now, will he?"

"I can take him!"

"I can too!"

"You said there was some kind of blood protection if he stayed with his relatives. But they obviously won't be protecting him from themselves!"

"He's much better off away from there!"

"You can't let him go back!"

"I won't allow it!"

Dumbledore silenced them once more with a wave of his hand.

"Nobody can know of this, you understand? If Voldemort becomes aware that the blood protection is void, he will waste no time in attacking. Also, if he becomes aware of Harry's rather defenseless state, he will take it to his advantage without a second thought. And after that, we have to settle where Harry will be staying over the holidays. And before any of you start, though I know you would be excellent guardians, and that you would love to have him, we need to take into account Harry's safety. I do realize that by going with what I deemed the safest place for him to be, I left him to years of abuse, verbal, emotional, and physical. These things will also need to be taken into account. For now, however, we have a two-year-old toddler on our hands."


End file.
